The St George Illawarra Dragons lurched from one disaster to the next throughout the 2023 season, and plenty of questions remain unanswered as the off-season rolls on.
In a season where a coach was sacked, the finals were missed again and the captain asked for a release, the Red V also had off-field issues and statements galore.
It was a long season for fans of the club, and while there is a brighter flicker on the horizon with the appointment of Shane Flanagan, a look back to ensure the same mistakes aren’t made again must be undertaken by a desperately under-pressure board from a fan base who don’t take kindly to a lack of success.
In this series, Zero Tackle will run the rule over every club’s season in the end of set of six.
A mid-season sacking that should have been pre-season
This dates all the way back to the start of the 2022 season when the Dragons’ board repeated old mistakes by taking up an option for Anthony Griffin to remain in charge of the club during 2023.
During Paul McGregor’s tenure, the Dragons extended his contract very early into a season despite not having the runs on the board, and having no clubs chasing him.
That move backfired spectacularly.
So when the Dragons took up Griffin’s option on the back of one well below-par season without a ball being kicked in the second, you could see the eye roll on the Wollongong hill from the centre of Kogarah.
It was so obviously the wrong move, and 2022 proved it. The start of 2023 was equally as disastrous. The team looked as if they had given up, and had no intention of playing for Griffin despite the comments made by Ben Hunt surrounding his own future if Griffin was given the punt.
The band-aid was finally ripped off mid-season when Griffin was sacked by the club, but it’s a move that should have been made pre-season without a contract option having been taken up to worry about.
Ultimately, a decision at the start of 2022, where a board failed to learn from past mistakes, cost the 2023 season as well.
How long it will take the joint-venture to recover from Griffin’s three-year tenure is up for dispute, despite the roster changes Shane Flanagan has already managed to make for 2024.
A ridiculous hooking problem and horror centre switch derail early chances
Sticking on the theme of coaching, and some of the head-scratchers early in the season arguably cost the Dragons real results and competition points.
The blunt refusal to play Jacob Liddle more minutes than Moses Mbye was baffling to say the least.
Zero Tackle analysis early in the campaign proved the Dragons were a far better team with Liddle on the park than Mbye, yet, the off-season recruit didn’t see a majority of the minutes at dummy half until after Griffin’s departure.
It wasn’t just one end of the park the Dragons found an advantage with Liddle on either – it was both attack and defence. Things came to a head on Anzac Day.
hen there were the issues with Moses Suli and Zac Lomax switching sides. That came to a head with Lomax eventually dropped by Griffin, only to be recalled by interim coach Ryan Carr.
Both players regressed in almost every statistical area while they were on the wrong side of the park.
Ultimately, neither move made sense and likely sealed the Dragons’ fate in 2023.
The Dragons had enough problems on the field throughout the 2023 campaign without Anthony Griffin’s much-needed axing causing further problems.
Just weeks after the decision was made, captain Ben Hunt decided he had enough of the Dragons and wanted out, requesting his release from within State of Origin camp.
The move hardly came as a surprise – he had been talking about his future at the club being tied to Griffin’s since before he had re-signed and even wanted a Griffin clause in his renewed contract.
The Dragons board, thankfully for the club’s fans, declined to accept on that part.
But Hunt’s on-field form wasn’t the same in 2023 either, and there are direct correlations that can be drawn between what was happening off the field and his issues on it.
While he has played the role of a one-man team at the Dragons at times, there were times in 2023 when he wasn’t even the best in a red and white jumper.
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While Cody Ramsey had seemingly become the number-one choice at the end of 2022, illness caused him to miss the entirety of 2023, and it’s likely that will continue into 2024.
It left Tyrell Sloan, a former SG Ball winner, as the fullback, and while he had some good moments, his attention to detail and defensive effort at times left a lot to be desired.
Without picking on specific examples, the generalisation of his abilities is that, at his best, he is unbelievably talented. Unfortunately, there is far too much of a gap between his best and worst.
That is something he must close if he hopes to hold the number one jumper under Flanagan, who doesn’t accept inconsistency.
That said, without even going to the open market, Flanagan has already put Sloan under pressure for his spot in 2024 by suggesting Lomax could play in the number one.
Watch this space over what could be one of the biggest storylines moving forward, because, without improvement on 2023 by Sloan, a change will be made.
One thing that became evident the longer the season went on was that the Dragons simply didn’t have the fitness to compete with the top teams.
Defence is built on a number of key determinants. Attitude, the ability to hang onto the ball, structures, and fitness.
The Dragons lacked in a number of those areas. Their completions rates at times left them under the pump, but it was fitness in the middle third that lacked.
Shane Flanagan has already indicated this pre-season ahead of 2024 is going to be something of a torture test, and frankly, it has to be if the Dragons are going to find a way to turn things around.
The Dragons’ biggest issue – for the time being – is Ben Hunt.
We have already touched on that though, so given he is expected to be at the club in 2024, his form will be of paramount importance. That realistically becomes even more so the case with the likely unavailability of Talatau Amone and the release of Jayden Sullivan to the Wests Tigers.
What the Dragons need is forwards, or their own forwards to stand up. If Flanagan can consistently get the best out of the Molo and Couchman brothers, Jack Bird, Jack de Belin, Jaydn Su’A and others, then the forward pack is good enough to at least compete with most sides.
That was shown during a better back-end of the season. The Dragons almost toppled the Panthers at one point, so there is enough talent there to make things happen.
The backline too has enough about it. Zac Lomax, at his best, has looked like an Origin player. Moses Suli is a weapon. The Feagai brothers have both had nice moments at times. Mikaele Ravalawa continues to improve.
Again, there is enough to cause a dent in this Dragons side, but whether they can shake the ‘losing attitude’ remains to be seen and may yet be Flanagan’s greatest challenge.
